Strawn's Eat Shop, Shreveport, LA

The 2011 foodie mantra is clear: pie is the new cupcake. As a cupcake purveyor I’m keenly aware of the turning tide in taste. Though I’m not too concerned. I’m pretty confident that the cupcake will stay around for a while, allowing folks bite-sized, instant gratification ensconced in a disposable wrapper.

But even as someone deep in camp cupcake, I’ve had my eye on the pie for several years now. It started in San Francisco back in 2008. I spent the year there—mostly in my office, but the few chances I had that year to get out from behind my desk, I used to discover the amazing food the city has to offer. And Mission Pies was one of the places I made a point to visit. Yes the pie was good, very good. But there was something lacking.

In my fantasy world pie is served at a retro, formica counter with a cheap ceramic mug of coffee (or tea) as an accompaniment. Yes, I want to eat great tasting, gourmet pie, not 3-day-old, from-a-freezer pie. But I also want that lethargic, small-town diner atmosphere in which to eat my pie.

So when I quit my job and took 6 weeks to drive across the country, I stopped for pie—often. The South knows pie. I’m sorry Brooklyn, NYC, San Francisco et al., but no matter how good your fancy pies taste, you will likely never understand that a slice of pie requires time to allow us eaters to sit at a table, bench, stool, whatever, but just sit and slowly enjoy one forkful at a time. No checking Blackberry’s or iPhones while eating pie either.

The result of my trip equaled much more than simply tasting a lot of pie. As I drove around the country, often through very small tows, I talked to people, relaxed, read the newspaper in whatever town I was visiting and slowly enjoyed my slice of pie at the local restaurant/diner/lunch counter.

My hope is that the pie fad is bigger than just pie. Perhaps we’ll all go back to taking a little time to enjoy what we eat. And maybe we’ll even wear fancy hats again while eating our delicious slice of pie. But perhaps this is more than our culture can absorb.

I’ll take a slice of coconut custard pie with whipped cream on top.

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Yes, it’s true. I’m moving back to Providence at the end of March. Instead of buying a one-way plane ticket back, I’m taking the scenic route east. I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone. It could be anywhere from two to six weeks, depending on factors such as weather and how much cash is left in the wallet.

The above map is only an approximation of the route I plan to drive. If you have any tips on must-see sights, restaurants or diners let me know. Drop me a line if it looks like I’m driving through your town and perhaps we can set up a blogger gathering. Besides just eating out, It would be great to meet-up with folks and cook the specialties of your locale. I’d love to cook with a southern grandma and learn to make a proper biscuit, or perhaps you live around New Orleans and want to share your method for gumbo–in return I’d be happy to share my grandma’s method for red sauce and meatballs.

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Catching up on the new season of Top Chef I realized I had a post I never finished from Rochester–white hot dogs. Growing up we were a Zweigle’s family and nearly always had a combo pack of red and white hot dogs in the fridge. It wasn’t until I moved to Boston to attend college that I (sadly) realized that white hot dogs are not widely availble, or even known, throughout most of the country.

The white hot dog, a combination of pork, beef and veal, has a mild flavor close to that of a bratwurst, but with the soft texture of a hot dog. Other producers of this variety include Hofmann out of Syracuse and Wegman’s store brand.

Upstate NY food bloggers–perhaps we can have a meetup this summer when I’m back home. Thinking we could do a littl hot dog cooking and sampling, as well as a few trips to some of the many diners that dot the landscape between Albany and Buffalo.

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I have a new candy addiction – salted caramels – and I blame our trip to Portland. It was there I tasted the salted caramels from the little chocolate shop, Sahagun. The candy is an adorable cup of dark, creamy chocolate filled with flowing caramel that is at the same time sweet and savory. And the addition of my favorite nut, the hazelnut, on top of the confection makes this treat my idea of perfection.

I also thoroughly enjoyed the hazelnut filled chocolates topped with a creamy, cupcake-ish chocolate hazelnut frosting.

A special thanks to fellow blogger Jessica of ItalyLogue for giving me the head’s up about the liquidity of the caramel so as not to have caramel drip down my chin after taking a bite

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I spotted Flyer Gold Plane No. 2 (Swiss dark chocolate with caramel) at the checkout counter of the Whole Foods Market (in Providence) and was immediately drawn to the packaging. The combination of a lovely vintage plane image, reminiscent of Pan Am graphics, and the words rich dark chocolate with caramel was too much to pass up.

The chocolate exterior was smooth and creamy and the caramel was absolutely lush and thick. I could taste the butter and sugar in the caramel, as well as the rich, nutty flavor that comes from bringing the caramel just to the point before it burns. This really is more of a high-end bon bon, the type you might find in a French candy boutique, rather than a plain bar. That said, don’t let the 270 calories per bar scare you. It’s so rich a few bites will easily satisfy the sweetest of sweet tooths.

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